Amateur Translators Research Articles

Unravelling the stylistic nuances: a comparative multidimensional analysis of amateur and professional translations of Legends of the Condor Heroes

Style research has always been an important field in corpus-based translation studies. However, the stylistic differences between amateur and professional translations of epic Chinese martial arts fiction have received limited attention in the existing literature. This study addresses this gap by examining the stylistic differences in amateur and professional translations of the novel Legends of the Condor Heroes, a representative work of this genre gaining popularity through fan-translation websites. Employing Biber’s multidimensional analysis, this study investigates fictional speech and narration in both amateur and professional translations. The findings reveal that amateur translations exhibit less variation between speech and narration, characterized by lower levels of involvement in dialog and reduced informational density in narrative passages. Moreover, amateur translations tend to employ more abstract language across both speech and narration compared to their professional counterparts. These stylistic disparities may influence readers’ comprehension and engagement with the text, potentially affecting their access to critical narrative elements. The study posits that the lack of professional training and experience, as well as the collaborative and open-source nature of amateur translation communities, may contribute to these observed differences in amateur translations. This research contributes to translation studies by examining stylistic differences between amateur and professional translations of Chinese martial arts fiction, potentially informing future studies on reader engagement and the reception of translated Chinese literature. The findings also highlight the importance of considering the impact of amateur translation practices on the dissemination and reception of popular genres in cross-cultural contexts.

More than just non-professional translators: The public perception of Chinese fansubbers in an English as a Lingua Franca world

This study explores the public perception of Chinese fansubbers in an English as a Lingua Franca (ELF) world. The analysis draws from a survey gathering both quantitative and qualitative data from 327 respondents. In an ELF world, Chinese audiences have demonstrated increasing linguistic competence in their appreciation of fansubbing, which has in turn enhanced their language acquisition. While fansubbers are often seen as amateur translators when compared with their professional counterparts, this study suggests that this distinction, already somewhat blurred within academic discourse, is of little concern to the public. In addition to their role as translators, fansubbers are perceived as cultural brokers and language educators who not only teach but also inspire a new generation of viewers to engage with foreign languages, cultures and translation. The public perception of Chinese fansubbers extends beyond translation quality to include broader and more positive attributes. The findings lead to a new understanding of the social impact of fansubbers.

Theorizing "Exercise Book" Through the Perspectives of Three Translation Theorists Jakobson, Derrida and Benjamin

A noble translator uncovers a text for the target language readers. An amateur translator, on the other hand, may destroy the prospect, beauty, and liveliness of the text. Therefore, while translating a text, a translator has to turn on his/her utmost possible creative aptitude along with a fanciful imagination of linguistic ability in context. The text “Exercise Book” is a short story, the translation of “Khata”, extracted from the collection of Rabindranath Tagore's short stories titled Rabindranath Tagore: Selected Short Stories, translated by William Radice. This analysis attempts to explore the emotional narrative and discovers if it interprets the subjectivity of Uma’s feelings and thoughts depicted in the short story “Khata” relatively. In addition, this paper is an exertion to understand and scrutinize which category of the translation does this story follow, while translating a text whether it is a sense-for-sense translation or word-for-word translation and whether it is a literary art form or not. For theorizing the translated short story three translation theories by Jakobson, Derrida and Benjamin have been reconnoitered in the paper. Keywords: Translator, creative, sense-for-sense, word-for-word, art, translation

Theorizing "Exercise Book" Through the Perspectives of Three Translation Theorists Jakobson, Derrida and Benjamin

A noble translator uncovers a text for the target language readers. An amateur translator, on the other hand, may destroy the prospect, beauty, and liveliness of the text. Therefore, while translating a text, a translator has to turn on his/her utmost possible creative aptitude along with a fanciful imagination of linguistic ability in context. The text “Exercise Book” is a short story, the translation of “Khata”, extracted from the collection of Rabindranath Tagore's short stories titled Rabindranath Tagore: Selected Short Stories, translated by William Radice. This analysis attempts to explore the emotional narrative and discovers if it interprets the subjectivity of Uma’s feelings and thoughts depicted in the short story “Khata” relatively. In addition, this paper is an exertion to understand and scrutinize which category of the translation does this story follow, while translating a text whether it is a sense-for-sense translation or word-for-word translation and whether it is a literary art form or not. For theorizing the translated short story three translation theories by Jakobson, Derrida and Benjamin have been reconnoitered in the paper. Keywords: Translator, creative, sense-for-sense, word-for-word, art, translation

Theorizing "Exercise Book" Through the Perspectives of Three Translation Theorists Jakobson, Derrida and Benjamin

A noble translator uncovers a text for the target language readers. An amateur translator, on the other hand, may destroy the prospect, beauty, and liveliness of the text. Therefore, while translating a text, a translator has to turn on his/her utmost possible creative aptitude along with a fanciful imagination of linguistic ability in context. The text “Exercise Book” is a short story, the translation of “Khata”, extracted from the collection of Rabindranath Tagore's short stories titled Rabindranath Tagore: Selected Short Stories, translated by William Radice. This analysis attempts to explore the emotional narrative and discovers if it interprets the subjectivity of Uma’s feelings and thoughts depicted in the short story “Khata” relatively. In addition, this paper is an exertion to understand and scrutinize which category of the translation does this story follow, while translating a text whether it is a sense-for-sense translation or word-for-word translation and whether it is a literary art form or not. For theorizing the translated short story three translation theories by Jakobson, Derrida and Benjamin have been reconnoitered in the paper. Keywords: Translator, creative, sense-for-sense, word-for-word, art, translation

Readers’ letters from abroad, in Russian, addressed to B. L. Pasternak after the publication of his novel “Doctor Zhivago”

The article examines the foreign readers' correspondence to B.L. Pasternak, written in Russian in 1958–1960. The work is based on the materials of the Russian State Archive of Literature and Art. The article lists editions of the novel “Doctor Zhivago” available to western readers in the Russian original (including pirated copies) and in foreign languages. These Russian-language letters are systematized according to the content and purpose of the letter, the sender’s country of residence, the sender’s nationality and cultural affiliation (be it a Russian emigrant or a foreigner who knows Russian). There are noted various opinions of readers about the poetics of the novel “Doctor Zhivago”, their questions about the work, the discussion on the Jewish question and the perception of Pasternak’s own personality among Russian emigration. The author examines Pasternak’s attitude to readers’ letters expressed by him in lyrical and epistolary forms. In addition to readers’ responses, Pasternak's letter to the amateur translator S. Weinberg (1959) is published for the first time.

COMPREHENSIVE METHODOLOGY FOR TRANSLATION ANALYSIS OF CROSS-CULTURAL INCONGRUITY IN ENGLISH ANECDOTES

The article substantiates the problem of performing translation analysis of cross-cultural incongruity in English anecdotes in Ukrainian translation using the methodology consisting of four methodological blocks (qualification, linguocultural, linguistic, and translation ones). The purpose of the article is to justify the presented cognitive and discursive methodology for translation analysis of cross-cultural incongruity when transferring the comic in English anecdotes into Ukrainian. The tasks of the research are the following: to characterize the methods of linguistic and cultural analysis in the study of the ethnocultural specificity of the conceptual picture of the world embodied in English anecdotes; to describe the methods of linguistic analysis of verbal means of expressing the comic in English anecdotes; to analyze the strategies and tactics of rendering the comic in Ukrainian translation of English anecdotes. The research material is taken from anecdotes in translation, presented in the collections Awesome Jokes by S. Keller and the resource 1001 Jokes by R. Wiseman on the Internet site, which were rendered into Ukrainian mostly by amateur translators, and in which comic effect was adequately represented in translation. 1112 anecdotes were studied, including 807 context realization of key concepts of the comic in original and translation. The research methodology of translation analysis of cross-cultural incongruity in English anecdotes during their translation into Ukrainian, in addition to the application of general scientific methods of analysis, synthesis, systematization, and induction, relies on the methodological base of linguocultural studies, cognitive linguistics, and translation studies. The cognitive and discursive nature of the research determines the choice of presentation of the research methodology in the form of methodological blocks, which include qualification, linguistic and cultural, linguistic and translation blocks. The qualification methodological block is a selection of relevant empirical material and general characterization of the phenomenon of the comic from the perspective of linguocultural, linguistic, and translation studies aspects of the incongruity of the English anecdote and supposes the method of continuous sampling. Further, the study of crosscultural incongruity caused by the ethnocultural features of the conceptual worldviews of the English and Ukrainian peoples presupposes the use of methods of linguocultural analysis constituting the linguocultural methodological block: the method of cultural and historical analysis, linguocultural analysis, interpretive and textual analysis, conceptual analysis, comparative analysis. Cross-cultural incongruity caused by the systemic and structural features of the linguistic world pictures of Englishmen and Ukrainians determines the use of methods of linguistic analysis in the linguistic methodological block: methods of contextual, distributive, component, and linguostylistic analysis. The study of the means of translation of verbal means of creating the comic in the translations of anecdotes into Ukrainian determines applying translational and transformational analysis which constitute the translation methodological block. The article argues that using the described methodology consisting of four methodological blocks (qualification, linguocultural, linguistic, and translation ones) allows us to draw the regularities in solving the problem of cross-cultural incongruity when translating English anecdotes into Ukrainian, thus connecting the type of incongruity with the means of its representation in translation.

Exploring new forms of audiovisual translation in the age of digital media: cybersubtitling and cyberdubbing

ABSTRACT The prevalence and popularity of audiovisual content in the current times has resulted in a wide range of practices which have been categorised within audiovisual translation (AVT) research as examples of fan translation, amateur translation, crowdsourcing or collaborative translation, among others. While some practices can be included under these categories, other forms of AVT that have recently emerged are not as clear-cut. Against this backdrop, this article explores the conceptual uncertainties surrounding these new AVT practices, with a focus on dubbing and subtitling, by revisiting the work carried out by the authors, who have previously suggested the use of the umbrella terms ‘cybersubtitling’ and ‘cyberdubbing’. In addition to providing a revised classification, the paper emphasises the need to explore the wider social and ethical consequences of these innovative translational activities. As regards ethical implications, altruist and fan practices are the ones most exposed to malpractice, often because some organisations emulate corporate behaviour but rely on free labour, without any financial retribution or credit towards those involved in these activities. The article also concludes that more critical research should be conducted to unravel the impact of these practices on the role of translation as a socio-professional activity.

The rules of the game: on the interplay between normative ideas and technology in an online amateur translation community

ABSTRACT In recent years, translation researchers have paid increasing attention both to the social dynamics within translation communities as well as to how members of these communities view their own translation practices and the normative ideas they formulate for their activities. In this article, I adopt a diachronic perspective by focussing on the processes of construction, negotiation and consolidation of normative ideas on translation and community in an online amateur translation community. Based on a virtual ethnography in a self-organised community of amateur translators, I explore how its members navigate often conflicting ideas of what it means to translate and of what kind of community they want to be. I try to retrace how some ideas meet with resistance while others are agreed upon and eventually established as formalised ‘rules’. Drawing on ‘technography’, a framework from science and technology studies, particular focus is laid on the role of the technology behind the community. In this context, the article shows how the technological design of a community can play a vital part in shaping, consolidating and enforcing the normative views of translation held by amateur translators.

PECULIARITIES OF SLANGISMS TRANSLATION IN ANNA TODD’S NOVEL «AFTER»

Background. The article is devoted to the study of the peculiarities of the translation of slangisms in Anna Todd’s novel After. The authors define slang as fragile, unstable, non-codified, and often completely random collections of lexemes that exist in the colloquial sphere, reflecting the public consciousness of people belonging to a certain social or professional environment. Slangisms are units of the lexical and phraseological system of slang used in popular oral and written speech. This article compares the translations of the novel After by the modern American writer A. Todd into Russian.
 Purpose. The purpose of the article is to study the features of the translation of slangisms on the example of official and unofficial (amateur) translations of A. Todd’s novel After.
 Materials and methods. The material of the study is A. Todd’s novel After, its official translation by M. Belyakov and an unofficial translation taken from the Ficbook.com website, performed by an amateur translator. During the study, a set of complementary research methods was used: theoretical analysis of scientific research on the problem, continuous sampling method, analysis and interpretation of the results obtained.
 Results. Based on the analysis of the corpus of examples, it was revealed that when translating slangisms in A. Todd’s novel After, such translation techniques as variant correspondence, semantic development, and contextual translation were most often used. When translating slangisms, translators considered such factors as the age, social and personal qualities of the characters, as well as the unique style of the author’s language.

Language Ideologies and Language Loss in 19th-Century Victoria: The Translations of William Thomas

ABSTRACTThe small amount of scripture translation into Aboriginal languages that occurred in 19th-century Victoria, Australia, stands in sharp contrast with the enthusiasm for translation in the Pacific Islands during the same period. By focusing on the work of William Thomas, the most prolific of the amateur translators, this article investigates why so little translation was completed. Thomas’s 1858 recommendation for English-only schools, and his discouragement of Aboriginal languages, seems to contradict his initial enthusiasm for translation and his lifelong interest in Aboriginal languages. In particular, I explore the possible influence of three language ideologies on Thomas’s thinking: the Protestant belief in the translatability of scripture, the Herderian connection between language and a people, and the Lockean ideology that certain languages or ways of speaking are obstacles to progress. Ultimately, the devastating decline in the Woiwurrung and Boonwurrung population exerted the most influence on Thomas’s thinking, though it did not curtail his belief in their just claim to substantial and “sacred” reservations of land.

Metindışı bilginin çeviri edincine katkısı

This paper is on the importance of extratextual knowledge in the professionalization of trainees. Translation is not a mere procedure of transfer from one language to another, but a cognitive process to be performed by combining original and translated text with cultural, encyclopedic or world knowledge. This raises the question what kind of method can be followed to turn textual research skills into reflex in translator training. Amateur translators who have not been able to acquire knowledge from their previous translation experiences produce time-consuming and non-functional translations by constantly encountering the same type of difficulties and errors. However, the translators have to do specific field translation even if they were not specialists, or experts. In this case, trying to find an answer to the question about how trainees acquire specific field knowledge from the perspective of translator training may help to improve the translation competence of them. Accordingly, this paper aims to develop awareness of extratextual knowledge in the course of translation by giving small sections especially from verse translation, which would refute their presumption that “there is no need for extra-textual research in verse translation”, thereby by gaining them awareness how they can acquire extra-textual knowledge even from verse translation. For this purpose, this paper is mainly divided into two sections: the first section sets up correlation between translation competence and extra-textual knowledge from the perspective of translation theory; the second chapter gives examples to guide the trainers how they can teach the ways of acquiring knowledge in the course of translation. As a result, this paper on translator training first discusses the impact of research and acquisition of extra-textual knowledge on the functionality of translation acquisition in the course of translation; Then, gives different examples from literary translation within framework of research techniques class to prove in what way discerning and tracking the tips on source text may help them enhance their storage of knowledge for prospective translation tasks and contribute to their professionalism.

The translation technique analysis of assertive speech acts in Venom movie subtitles

The objective of this study is to find out the translation techniques in assertive speech acts of Venom movie subtitles by professional and amateur translators. The researchers used the qualitative method in analyzing the selected assertive speech acts data which are taken from the script and classifying them according to Searle (1969) theory, then classify the translation techniques according to Molina and Albir (2002) theory. The findings showed there are 144 utterances (data) of assertive speech acts. The total of single assertive speech acts is 136 (0.9%) utterances, the total of couplet assertive speech acts is 7 (0.06%) utterances, the total of single translation technique by the professional translator is 36 (0.39%) utterances, the total of single translation techniques by the amateur translator is 65 (0.43%) utterances, the total of couplet translation technique by the professional translator is 62 (0.44%) utterances, the total of duplet translation technique by the amateur translator is 56 (0.41%) utterances, the total of triplet translation techniques by the professional translator is 23 (0.21%) utterances, the total of triplet translation techniques by the amateur translator is 19 (0.18%) utterances, the total of quadruplet translation techniques by the professional translator is 3 (0.03%) utterances, the total of quadruplet translation techniques by the amateur translator is 3 (0.03%) utterances. Hopefully, this research is helpful for the future researcher, especially those who deal with the translating skill
 Keywords: Translation; Translation techniques; Assertive speech acts; Subtitle

FEATURES OF THE HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL SONG TEXTS TRANSLATION INTO RUSSIAN

The article is aimed at the analysis of the requirements for song translation. We have considered the studies of foreign and Russian linguists on song translation, identified the difficulties that a translator may face, translation solutions, and criteria for song translation. We analyzed the lyrics of the song What I’ve been looking for and its official translation performed by Mikhail Cherepnin and then we discovered whether the translator complied with the requirements or not.
 Background. There is a number of translation solutions and rules that allow achieving adequacy in the translation of musical texts and libretto of musicals. The analysis of M. Cherepnin’s translation is made on the material of the text of the High School Musical musical film.
 Purpose. The article considered the features of the translation of a musical text on the example of the translation of the song What I’ve been looking for performed by M. Cherepnin.
 Materials and methods. The material of the study was the High School Musical film and its official literary translation into Russian. We used the method of selection and analysis of theoretical material, the method of pre-translation, translation, post-translation analysis and comparative method when analyzing the text.
 Results. The results of our study showed that M. Cherepnin faced a lot of obstacles when translating the text of this musical film. His main goal was to preserve the singing component of the text, and not its figurative system, which affected the aesthetic and emotional impact.
 Practical implications. The results of our research can find a wide range of applications: they will be useful both for amateur translators involved in the interpretation of musical works, and for professional translators and linguists actively working in the field of song translation and studying it as a phenomenon.

Russian Byron in the XXI Century: Notes on Modern Translations of Sun of the Sleepless

This work reviews and analyses translations of Byron’s poem Sun of the Sleepless in modern Russia. Fourteen translations of this poem that appeared on the Internet from 2000 to 2021 serve as a case study. Of the ten authors, only two are professionally connected with literature. The rest are amateur translators. Analysis of the texts showed that, according to the classification of translations created by R.R. Tchaikovsky and E.L. Lyskenkova, all discovered translations are divided into four groups: translations-variations, translations-modifications, imitations and poems based on the original. Six translations-variations continue the traditions of the Russian translation school, conveying the form and content of the original with varying degrees of accuracy. Translations-modifications are characterized by a greater degree of freedom. They do not convey the form of the original, they make changes to the contents of the original, but their connection with Byron’s text is easily traced. Another group of texts refers to imitation translations: the author created five versions of the text, which are connected with the original only by an attempt to preserve the poetic meter and vocabulary. One more poem can be considered written to the motive of Sun of the Sleepless. The content of these texts differs sharply from the original. Here we can say that reading Byron awakened in the authors the need for their own creativity. A review of translations shows that Byron's lyrics are still in demand in Russia.

Fansubbing practices in Ukraine

This research focuses on the analysis of the English non-professional subtitles of the Ukrainian films, produced by the amateur translators for whom English is a foreign language. Such exploration in the nature of fansubbing gives insights into the basic principles that define the notion of subtitling, examines the standards set to the audiovisual translation, and outlines the challenges fansubbers may face in the process of subtitling. The study is based on the following Ukrainian films of the second half of the XXth – beginning of the XXIst century: Chasing Two Hares (1961); Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors (1965); Prayer for Hetman Mazepa (2001). The analysis of the films is conducted on the syntactic, lexical, and grammatical levels, as well as on the level of fansubs screen presentation (spatial and temporal parameters). The study discusses fansubbers’ translation decisions from the perspective of their correlation with the established subtitling guidelines, and their effect on the foreign audience.

Translation hacking in Arabic video game localization

Abstract The present article discusses the notion of translation hacking and attempts to chart the history of this practice in the Arabic context. It also discusses the current practices of translation hacking by examining the work of a well-organized online community of Arab translation hackers called Games in Arabic (GiA). To this end, the study adopts two methods for data collection. First, semi-structured interviews were conducted with the first translation hackers in the Arab world in order to document the history of this practice. Second, a cyberethnographic approach was adopted to collect qualitative data related to GiA, including their translation hacking practices and the technologies used to facilitate their collaborative work. Subsequently, this article attempts to reveal the roles played by the different GiA community members in executing their projects and how they control for quality in their work. Ultimately, the article attempts to provide insights into the practice of Arabic game localization performed by amateur translators, hackers, and gamers, in the hope of adding to current professional and pedagogical practices in Arabic game localization.

THE ANALYSIS OF TRANSLATION STRATEGIES IN AMATEUR SUBTITLING TRANSLATION BASED ON CULTURE-SPECIFIC ELEMENTS

The aim of this paper is to investigate translation strategies that amateur translators use when dealing with culture-specific words and expressions in the context of subtitling translation. Our research focuses on finding the most frequent source-oriented and target-oriented strategies (Pedersen 2011) found in the popular sitcom Still open All Hours. As amateur subtitling is one of the most interesting disciplines in audiovisual translation, it is still one of the most underexplored areas of AVT, which makes it suitable for the present research. Also, cultural references are considered to be one of the most challenging issues when it comes to translation (Nedergaard-Larsen, Pedersen), so exploring these aspects will enable us to come to valid conclusions and insights into the amateur translation process. The translation analysis will be done by taking into account the text-function theory (Nord 2005) and comparing amateur translation solutions with proffesional translation samples. As a result, we hope to find out if amateur translators have in mind a specific target audience when translating or whether the "external" aspect to translate for a specific audience is absent (Cronin 2012). In the same vein, we expect to investigate if these type of translations are just a mere "linguistic exchange" (Orrego-Carmona 2017) and if the translations provided are correct and context-appropriate. By analysing the corpus we will obtain results about the most used translation strategies and see if there are differences between amateur and professional translations, as well as if and to what extent the English language has influenced the Montengrin language.

Changing translation practices and moving boundaries in translation studies

AbstractThis article aims at describing the changes in translation by referring to practices such as localization, amateur translation, translating in the media. The changes are enhanced by the computing, information, and communication technologies. In three decades, a new work environment has shaken up the translator’s world. New types of translators are emerging, with a new hierarchy between them, in parallel with a multiplication of labels created for “translation.” The concept of translation has, therefore, become ambiguous and, relating to it, other concepts, such as text, need to be revisited.

ОСОБЕННОСТИ ПОЭТИЧЕСКОГО ЯЗЫКА Р. М. РИЛЬКЕ В АНГЛИЙСКИХ ПЕРЕВОДАХ

This study aims to assess the adequacy of the form of German sonnets when reproduced in English translations. The focus is on interrogative sentences, which, together with the sonnet in the form of a macro-sentence, the shortened verse and enjambment, are the characteristics of the innovative features of Sonnets to Orpheus by R. M. Rilke. The lyrical cycle Sonnets to Orpheus is among the most translated into world languages of Rilke’s poetry works, as well as Duino Elegies. Both professional and amateur poets and translators have been competing to put the Austrian writer’s best poems into English. Here we examine more than twenty English translations of the Sonnets into English, made from 1936 to 2008. The importance of the comparative linguistic-stylistic study of the original and its translations is determined by the continuing interest in Rilke’s works in English-speaking countries and the necessity to understand the principles of reconstructing the features of Rilke’s poetics using the English language. The system of methods used in this work includes: historical and philological analysis, comparative linguistic and stylistic description, as well as comparative analysis of the original and translation in the form that was developed in the works of V. Bryusov (1905), N. Gumilev (1919), M. Lozinsky (1935), E. Etkind (1963), S. Goncharenko (1987). We have found that the innovative nature of German sonnets is not always reflected in English translations. In some translations, American and British translators significantly modified the form of the original: interrogative sentences dominating in XVII and XVIII sonnets of the second part of the lyric cycle were not reproduced in English translations made by G. Good, D. Young, C. Haseloff, N. Mardas Billias and others.